A Teen's Story
by sukairaa-chan
Summary: Being a teenager is kind of hard. Especially if you're forced to stop and think about life when you never had to before. After meeting Clarisse, this teen has to do just that and he's not sure how to feel about it.


**A/N: This was just a short story written for Fahrenheit 451. If you have not read it, you probably shouldn't read this, for it contains spoilers and it would confuse the crap out of you. Other than that, enjoy. :) **

Fast. We were going so fast. The ground around us was a blur and so was the night sky. The beetle hummed a quiet hum as we sped down the highway.

A man was standing in the middle of the road. He just stared back at us, a look of pure terror on his face as we rushed closer towards him.

The others shouted at me. "Run him over!" "Spatter him everywhere!" "Hit the gas!"

I stared at the man. His features were the same as she explained they were.

His name? What was his name? Monday? No, Manog?

We were getting closer, the man started hobbling towards the other side of the highway. The others were still shouting and whooping.

"Montag." I whispered to myself and swerved, just as he fell flat on his face.

* * *

Just another boring day of class; barely learning anything and spending what little time I had to spend here drawing on the desks. It's not like anyone would tell me to stop, the teacher was a recording.

I yawned as I darkened the line of the eye I was drawing, just waiting for the time to tick away to our freedom.

Our teacher finished giving us the answers to the problem on the board, then dismissed us.

I jumped up from my chair, grabbing my little bag and ran out of the door-just to run into the freak girl.

I glared at her as I stood. "Watch it, freak."

She looked me in the eyes and smiled. "Yeah, I'm sorry. I was just a little distracted. My bad." She stood, brushed herself off, and walked away.

I watched her walk down the hallway. No one has ever done that before. Looked me in the eyes. Every time I would threaten someone like that, they would just mumble a response and walk away, staring at the ground.

My buddies punched me in the arm, telling me to hurry up and get outside. It was time to drive.

* * *

I said bye to my friends and walked down the dark street towards my house. It was just a regular walk back, until I saw her. The freak girl.

I snapped my gaze down to the paved road, hoping she would just ignore me.

"Hey you." A feminine voice said from behind.

I sighed and continued to walk. "What do you want, freak?"

She ran up to my side and fell in step with me. "Nothing. I just want to talk."

"Well, I don't." I quickened my pace.

She was besides me again. "Then we can just walk together."

I grumbled something under my breath and glared at the ground. "Fine."

After a few silent moments of walking, she threw her head back and gazed up at the sky. "Have you ever looked at the stars before? Like, stopped and actually looked?"

I scowled and glared at her. "No, I haven't."

She smiled at me. "Well, it's beautiful. You should try it sometime."

Then she was gone. I looked around and saw her turning down another street.

I frowned as I watched her go, then, slowly, I looked up to the black sky. I stared at the many twinkling lights, making pictures in my mind.

I stayed like that for a while longer before I began walking again.

* * *

The girl, Clarisse was her name, started walking with me every night from then. And every time I saw her, she had something new to tell me. She would say things like, "Have you ever thought about those little weeds that grow inside the sidewalk cracks?" And, "Why do you have to go so fast anyway? And what's the point in hurting others for entertainment?"

I was actually beginning to like her and her weird topics. But every time she would mention books, I would get a little nervous. What if she was hiding books? I didn't want her to get hurt or anything, but it was against the law to have them.

The last day I saw her, she explained to me about a man she met. "His name is Montag and he's a fireman, though he doesn't seem like a regular fireman. He's actually curious about things and how they work."

I nodded, listening closely to her. "That's cool. I always though about being one of those when I was a kid. Then I grew up and thought it was too much work."

She laughed a small, light hearted laugh. "You should meet him sometime. He's a really nice guy."

I smiled, the first real smile I've ever smiled in my whole life. "I'll try to do that."

Clarisse stopped suddenly and I glanced back at her, stopping as well. "What's wrong?"

She was watching the sky again, smiling. "I like you, you're so different from all those other kids." She lowered her gaze back to me. "I have a feeling something's going to happen and I wanted to let you know that." With that, she turned down her street.

I never saw her again after that.

* * *

I missed her. I missed the long, night walks and her ramblings. I would usually drive around to get my mind off of it, but that barely did anything.

One night, my friends asked me to go on a drive with them. I agreed.

* * *

Fast. We were going so fast. The ground around us was a blur and so was the night sky. The beetle hummed a quiet hum as we sped down the highway.

A man was standing in the middle of the road. He just stared back at us, a look of pure terror on his face as we rushed closer towards him.

The others shouted at me. "Run him over!" "Spatter him everywhere!" "Hit the gas!"

I stared at the man. His features were the same as she explained they were.

His name? What was his name? Monday? No, Manog?

We were getting closer, the man started hobbling towards the other side of the highway. The others were still shouting and whooping.

"Montag." I whispered to myself and swerved, just as he fell flat on his face.

We drove farther down the highway, my friends yelling at me to turn around and try to hit him again.

I gripped the steering wheel, thoughts still processing through my head. What was going on? Why was he out on the highway, especially at this time of night?

One of my friends pried my hands off the wheel and pushed me to the back.

They turned the beetle around and raced down the highway.

I could only watch in horror as they rushed closer and closer to him. He was still trying to hobble to the other side of the highway. He was so close!

I silently hoped he could make it to the other side. I hoped he would make it. I hoped he would live.

I didn't even know him, but based on what Clarisse had told me, he seemed to be a good man. He couldn't do anything bad, like what we would do. He wasn't a killer.

He stepped onto the curb of the sidewalk just as we sped by. My friends let out sounds of disappointment and we drove off.

I told them to let me out at my house and, when I entered, I found the parlor walls aglow with breaking news. Apparently, a chase had been going on. I sat and listened to the announcer guys talk on about the search and the mechanical hound that was on the scene. The camera showed the hound stop at the river, then turn around and run off in a different direction.

I asked my mom what was going on and she told me, "This person just set this man on fire after being arrested for possessing books, then ran. His name is Guy Montag, right honey?" She asked my dad sitting next to her.

He grunted and nodded, eyes glued to the screen.

I stared at the walls.

Montag killed a man. I didn't know what to think about that, but for some odd reason, I knew he had a good excuse for it. I some how knew that he had to do what he did.

I turned and went into my room. I opened my window and stared up at the night sky, full of the little stars again.

"Good luck on your journey, Montag." I sighed and dangled my arm out the window. I had a feeling. A feeling something was going to happen. "I wanted to let you know that."

Just like Clarisse, the freak girl who dared to stop and think, the girl who I began to like as a friend, the girl who I began to look up to, the girl who disappeared into the night, that was the last thing I said before I was never seen again.

That was the last thing I said before the bombs dropped on top of our heads, killing us all.

Clarisse was right, the night sky is very beautiful when you stop and look.


End file.
